Cultural Heritage Tourism Handbook - LinkBC

3.6 Motivations of Cultural Tourists in Canada3.7 The EQ TM Model for Understanding Cultural TouristsThe Travel Activities & Motivations Survey (TAMS) Culture &Entertainment Reports contain valuable information about theCanadian market. These “segmentation” reports, combined withtwo TAMS culture and entertainment overview reports, form anintegrated picture of the culture and entertainment market. Theyinclude many non-cultural entertainment activities such as attendingsporting events, shopping, or gambling. As there are differences inthe activities examined in each country, care must be taken whenCanada and US TAMS Activity ProfilesTAMS Culture and Heritage Product Participation Rates: Findings 29Cultural Activity Groupings – Canada Rank(numbers missing are activities not culture-related)interpreting the findings from a cultural/heritage tourism perspective.That said, they can provide useful data on the overall percentage oftravellers who included these activities in their trips. The table belowcompiles data from the 17 Canadian and US reports that examinecultural tourism activities 28 .Segmenting the market by visitor interest can help destinationsmatch visitors with the right products, as we see next.Canada:% participation on trips1. Shopping, Dining 61.7 60.42. Historical Sites, Museums, Art Galleries 43.4 41.43. Theme Parks, Exhibits 29.1 37.84. Fairs & Festivals 28.0 31.75. Musical Concerts, Festivals, Attractions 24.47. Wine, Beer, Food Tastings 17.7 17.78. Science Technology Exhibits 17.2 19.19. Live Theatre 15.510. Garden Theme Attractions 13.1 1.311. Agri-Tourism 11.7 10.414. Aboriginal Cultural Experiences 8.6 6.615. High Art Performances 8.2 8.516. Comedy Clubs, Festivals 7.517. Visits to Spas 7.518. Participatory Historical Activities 5.0 3.019. Equestrian & Western Events 5.0 12.021. Literary & Film Festivals 1.9Products Surveyed in US OnlyTheatre, Comedy Clubs, Casinos 35.1Fine Dining and Spas 25.5Rock Concerts, Recreational Dancing 11.8Theatre, Film, Musical Festivals 6.5Archaeological Digs, Sites 4.2US:% participation on tripsCommunities and major tourism organizations are working hard to better understand cultural/heritage tourists. Recently, the Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC), working with Environics, devisedthe Explorer Quotient TM (EQ) as another tool for segmenting and reaching different kinds of visitors.In the CTC’s words: “the Explorer Quotient TM is a new way of lookingat consumer segmentation, based on insights that are far richerthan traditional metrics such as income, age, travel intentions andpreferred activities. Two travellers standing in the same place, participatingin the same activity, can be going through two completelydifferent experiences. As a broad example, imagine how a Japanesetraveller might interpret Lake Louise as a spiritual connection tonature, compared to a German traveller who might feel a great senseof personal accomplishment at having realized a lifelong travel goal.”The EQ segments point to the underlying emotional motivators oftravellers, with four of the nine directly related to cultural tourism:• The Cultural History Buff• The Cultural Explorer• The Authentic Explorer• The Personal History ExplorerUnderstanding what motivates a particular market segment allowsa destination, or individual attraction, to redefine the ways theylure visitors. Parks Canada, for example, has used these new toolsto gain a better understanding of how the parks experience canbe enhanced for various types of visitors.It’s important to note that a cultural/heritage tourism strategy for adestination will appeal to a variety of segments – or to overlappingsegments. You can take an online quiz to determine the type of“EQ” traveller you are:www.eq.canada.travelThe EQ profile that follows is an example of the insights thistool can provide.24 25